Government warned against 10-Year Plan ‘restructure’
One of the central ideas in the 10-Year Health Plan is “not novel” and could be damaging if it imposes a “one size fits all” model, a community health leader has told HSJ.
Steph Lawrence was, until last year chief nurse at Leeds Community Healthcare Trust, which has been celebrated by Labour leaders for its development of integrated care and out-of-hospital working.
Next month, she becomes chief executive of the Queen’s Institute of Community Nursing, representing staff who will need to be central to a “neighbourhood health service” – a proposal due to feature heavily in the government’s 10-Year Health Plan.
She spoke to HSJ before taking up the post. Asked about neighbourhood health (NH), she warned: “I don’t think this is a new idea. I don’t think this is anything novel. In Leeds, we have had integrated neighbourhood teams since about 2012 or 2013…
“It’s the right thing to do. But [what] worries me is that every neighbourhood will be different, and therefore one size is never going to fit all…
“Sometimes we get this impression that if we put teams together in one place, they’ll naturally get on and work together. That isn’t how it works. It works by developing relationships and making sure you focus on the person, not what the service needs”.
The nurse leader’s comments come amid fears the plan, expected next month, may encourage a takeover of community and other services by acute providers.
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Source: HSJ, 17 June 2025